(10-22-2021 06:20 PM)techdawg88 Wrote:  

(10-22-2021 06:14 PM)quo vadis Wrote:  

(10-22-2021 06:02 PM)techdawg88 Wrote:  be nice to FIU, they're one of our only friends at the moment

LA Tech needs to beg ULM to get them an SBC invite.

I wouldn't beg either ULM or ULL if I was on fire

But….not to worry. Me thinks it’s too late for begging anyway.

So what happened to Liberty and UMass ?

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At this point I think the only realistic way to save C-USA is if the 5 remaining programs can get NMSU to join, and also add UMass and UConn as football only members. Not a nice regional conference, but at least it would be composed of current FBS programs. And, I think that would be a much better situation than looking to Tarelton State.

Proposed New C-USA
LA Tech
UTEP
WKU
MTSU
FIU
NMSU
UConn (football only)
UMass (football only)

If C-USA could sustain itself with those 8 for a few years, maybe they would have time to find two more quality additions. Just my thoughts.

(10-23-2021 06:22 AM)Side.Show.Joe Wrote:  At this point I think the only realistic way to save C-USA is if the 5 remaining programs can get NMSU to join, and also add UMass and UConn as football only members. Not a nice regional conference, but at least it would be composed of current FBS programs. And, I think that would be a much better situation than looking to Tarelton State.

Proposed New C-USA
LA Tech
UTEP
WKU
MTSU
FIU
NMSU
UConn (football only)
UMass (football only)

If C-USA could sustain itself with those 8 for a few years, maybe they would have time to find two more quality additions. Just my thoughts.

Going for UConn and UMass for football only makes an already undesirable situation worse. UConn and UMass would only be logical if they could be all sports invites and UConn is not leaving the Big East. Furthermore, a conference needs 8 full members, correct?

I think Missouri St should be added quickly and there would be a core 4 of WKU, MTSU, Missouri St. and LaTech to build out from. Along with UTEP, NMSU and then FIU, that is 7. Dipping into the WAC, ASUN and/or MVC would be the next steps for the conference. Not ideal, but there is not much left for these schools to do if WKU and MTSU can't get into the MAC.

2030: UTEP, Tarleton, SHU, NMSU, MoSt, APSU/UTC, EKU, SDSU, NDSU, JSU, SFA

Something like that.

(10-23-2021 06:14 AM)UTSAMarineVet09 Wrote:  So what happened to Liberty and UMass ?

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Liberty idea is never going to happen and UMass will not want to park their basketball here.

(10-23-2021 06:22 AM)Side.Show.Joe Wrote:  At this point I think the only realistic way to save C-USA is if the 5 remaining programs can get NMSU to join, and also add UMass and UConn as football only members. Not a nice regional conference, but at least it would be composed of current FBS programs. And, I think that would be a much better situation than looking to Tarelton State.

Proposed New C-USA
LA Tech
UTEP
WKU
MTSU
FIU
NMSU
UConn (football only)
UMass (football only)

If C-USA could sustain itself with those 8 for a few years, maybe they would have time to find two more quality additions. Just my thoughts.

I actually think that backloading with FCS is better than bring in the horrid football-only additions. Sure, if UConn and UMass bring the entirety of their athletics - fantastic. otherwise, even the FCS backfilled C-USA should hold the line. If C-USA needs a clean restart, they should not sacrifice integrity from the get go. You want a place to park your football? Fine, bring the entire athletics.

I know some here will immediately give me crap because I am a fan of the school that is leaving and why should I care, but this is how I feel.

https://twitter.com/dennisdoddcbs/status...0&ref_url=

First team joining.

Put the "USA" back in Conference USA, and bring in brands. If members want to go Independent because new additions are too far or too north, then so be it, but the biggest brands in the FCS and for the last 10 years are not in the Southeast, and CUSA needs brands. North Dakota State and South Dakota State will do that. Missouri State also has a decent brand. The former Western Kentucky and Arkansas coach, Bobby Petrino, is their headcoach. Sam Houston is very likely able to bring in some brand recognition, as well. The league needs to work as a whole instead of expecting every new addition to be 3-4 hours or less away. That is not realistic nor does that kind of proximity help the league and its members enter new markets.

CUSA needs to grow a pair and quit being afraid to enter these markets everyone else has avoided because they are too far or because they're afraid someone is going to leave because they don't like the addition. There is a market there, and it is untapped. Instead, there is this desire to try to milk what is left of a supersaturated southeast market where CUSA will struggle to be the fifth or sixth best conference behind all the FBS leagues and a few FCS leagues.

Conference USA needs to take this league in a different direction. What they've tried in the past hasn't worked. The league has never been stable. The league has struggled to be marketable. The league needs a fresh look, and it needs to be different than the AAC/Big East junior league it had been for the past 25 years. The conference doesn't have a whole lot of options, and it's time for change.

(10-22-2021 06:02 PM)techdawg88 Wrote:  be nice to FIU, they're one of our only friends at the moment

I wish they cared about football. It would be nice to have a rival with a pulse. Their AD is a UM alum who doesn’t want them to take the spotlight away from big brother.

CUSA should add Jackson State and FAMU.

(10-24-2021 05:25 PM)All4One Wrote:  Put the "USA" back in Conference USA, and bring in brands. If members want to go Independent because new additions are too far or too north, then so be it, but the biggest brands in the FCS and for the last 10 years are not in the Southeast, and CUSA needs brands. North Dakota State and South Dakota State will do that. Missouri State also has a decent brand. The former Western Kentucky and Arkansas coach, Bobby Petrino, is their headcoach. Sam Houston is very likely able to bring in some brand recognition, as well. The league needs to work as a whole instead of expecting every new addition to be 3-4 hours or less away. That is not realistic nor does that kind of proximity help the league and its members enter new markets.

CUSA needs to grow a pair and quit being afraid to enter these markets everyone else has avoided because they are too far or because they're afraid someone is going to leave because they don't like the addition. There is a market there, and it is untapped. Instead, there is this desire to try to milk what is left of a supersaturated southeast market where CUSA will struggle to be the fifth or sixth best conference behind all the FBS leagues and a few FCS leagues.

Conference USA needs to take this league in a different direction. What they've tried in the past hasn't worked. The league has never been stable. The league has struggled to be marketable. The league needs a fresh look, and it needs to be different than the AAC/Big East junior league it had been for the past 25 years. The conference doesn't have a whole lot of options, and it's time for change.

NDSU and Sam Houston State are both recent fcs champions and not once but 8 times since 2011 for NDSU. SDSU lost the fcs championship game to Sam Houston in 2020.
NDSU and SDSU can be each other travel partner. Sam Houston can be LT’s. All three are winning additions for CUSA. The Dakotas will be flagship fbs teams in their states and likely will have better fan support than the 5th fbs team in any more populated states.

(10-24-2021 05:28 PM)KingStucky Wrote:  CUSA should add Jackson State and FAMU.

FAMU tried to go to FBS several years ago and got seriously burned.